Today we made a trip to the island of Tortola in the British Virgin Islands. We met with representatives from the Conservation and Fisheries Department. We were given a presentation on some of the other departments they worked in collaboration with as well as what some of the current projects consisted of. They worked with the National Parks Trust, Department of Disaster Management, and the Town and Country Planning Department. They alone consist of the Fisheries, Environmental, Environmental Education, Geographic Information and Administration units. Some of their projects included managing fisheries sources, a tortoise tagging program, monitoring birds marine mammals and turtles, mapping the territory’s natural resources, providing information to the public as well as developing policies and legislation to mange the natural environment. They further talked about issues regarding sustainable development, the enforcement of legislation, and impacts of tourism and methods of environmental management. They explained how wildlife in the BVI was disappearing because of the yachts, boats, development, pollution and other preventable factors and how it is important to maintain the marina especially for the turtles, fish etc. They summarized a list of thirteen goals that ranged from the preservation of biodiversity to strengthening community infrastructure as well as reducing economic vulnerability. The BVI representatives continually were distinguishing themselves from the USVI in that they are less commercialized and try to maintain greater levels of preservation. Ms. Taylor had told us the night before that a lot of the BVI money comes from offshore banking in addition to tourism that appeals to a more upscale niche in the market. There are no McDonald's, Wendy's, Marriott hotels or big tourist chains but rather more locally owned enterprises. We asked them whether or not there was pressure from the private sector to develop there and were told that they were not dependent on tourism but rather that tourism created jobs within their economy. Today was really helpful for all us to be able to compare and contrast the ways in which the USVI and BVI function differently yet still adhere to the same basic principles and goals of preserving the environment, while trying to better the standard of living for all.
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